There are three very important reasons you want to be strategic and specific about how you choose and set your Realtor business name online:
Alright, so now let's take some of the stress out of the process and break down how and why you want to simplify your Business Name, get strategic, and cut all the extras out
Individual Real Estate Agents are considered to be 'practitioners' by Google. That is, anyone who practices under another business or location where there are other practitioners also providing the same service. Realtors fall into this category along with Doctors, Lawyers, and Accountants. The good thing is that this simplifies how to set up your business name considerably based on Google's restrictions.
As a Practitioner, you are only allowed to use your name and your professional designation which in this case should be 'Realtor'
I get a lot of clients that want to use 'Real Estate Agent', but I always very strongly encourage the use of the term 'Realtor' instead, as it has been shown to be commonly searched for. That means it's both a Professional Designation (check) AND a keyword people are searching for (double check!)
Definitely DO NOT use your Brokerage name in your online business name. A lot of Realtors fall into the trap of thinking that they have to include their Brokerage name due to local Real Estate Board guidelines, but not only is this not the case, but it is against Google's Business Profile Rules. Worse, having your Brokerage name inside your own Business Profile name may results in Google flagging your Business profile as a 'duplicate' and merging it (and any reviews you have) into your office brokerage business profile. This merge will be irreversible and will mean you need to start from square one - ouch!
DO: Include your full Brokerage Name and Address on your website to meet typical real estate board requirements
DON'T: Include your Brokerage Name in your Business Profile name on Google or other profile sites
If you are a PREC, while you are required to use 'Personal Real Estate Corporation everywhere, Google doesn't allow it. It's kind of like how you don't see Starbucks Corp. when you search for Starbucks even though Starbucks Corp is their actual legal business name. Business Profiles on Google and other search sites are built (and all of the rules around them) to make businesses easily searchable and findable locally.
To prevent suspension of your business profile on Google and to get more exposure for people looking for your services, use the rules to your advantage. You put information like this in your business description, but do not add it to your business profile name.
DO: Include Personal Real Estate Corporation in your business description
DON'T: Include Personal Real Estate Corporation or PREC in your business name
Best practice is to use the simplest form, tailored to meet all of the rules and guidelines and help you show up and rank in local search results:
Your Name, Realtor
Example: Jim Jones, Realtor
That's it! When we have teams or duos setting up their business, if they don't have a team name, we often recommend something similar.
Name 1 & Name 2, Realtor(s)
Example: Jim Jones & Sarah Smith are a team and want to show their business together on Google:
Resulting Business Name: Jim Jones & Sarah Smith, Realtors
Note on Teams: If you are setting up your Team with a particular business name, do a little research in your area for the terms people are searching for to make sure your team name will work for you and rank higher in local search!
Have questions or need some help determining the best fit for your business? Click the link below to book a strategy call and we'll go through what the best options are for you!
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